Second Chance
by DarkAngelWind
Summary: What if Eric and Alan were given a second chance? At life, at being together...now all they need to do is remember.
1. Chapter 1

The young woman scrambles across the misty docks, desperate to flee. She can't see a thing in the fog, but she can hear someone pursuing her. Suddenly she slips on the soggy wood, and she finds herself sprawled across the dock "No…:" she whispers as she hears the footsteps getting closer. She thrashes like mad, struggling to get back on her feet and far away from the stalker. She falls again, this time tripping on the edge of her own dress. "No!" She cries again. But the pounding footsteps are ever nearer, and the panting is right above her…she screams as she is pierced by the saw. Then, mercifully, everything went black.

"Not again…" The 'stalker' mutters as he finds himself tangled in the sheets of his bed, far away from the ominous docks of his dream.

Eric sighed and looked down at the stacks of paper on his desk. He hated paperwork. Eric really wasn't suited for a desk job. He was much better at things like _prowling the streets at night, looking for someone who seemed pure. Eric smiles as he finds a perfect target. It takes him only seconds to steal the light from her eyes, like he had done this hundreds of times. Not hundreds. 1000. _

Eric shuddered at the gruesome image. Where the hell were these morbid thoughts coming from?

"Hey, Slingby, is it really necessary to shiver in fear when I walk in the door?"

Eric looked up to find his boss staring at him amusedly. When did he get there…? "Sorry Mr. Evans. It had nothing to do with you."

"Don't worry about it, Slingby, you're just fun to mess with. Anyway, Vicarioli went home sick today. I think she's gonna be out for a while, looks like you're flu from last week's going around. You'll cover her work?"

Eric tried to smile, though it seemed more like a grimace. "Sure, Mr. Spears."

"Spears?" Mr. Evans raised an eyebrow.

Eric laughed falsely. "Did I do that again? I'm sorry Mr. Evans! I'll get started on Vicarioli's work right now."

The forced grin faded the moment his boss left the room. He could barely finish his own work, let alone Hannah's. He knew he should've started on SOMETHING, but all he really wanted to do was go home.

Eric awoke to something jabbing him furiously in stomach. To his dismay, it was only a pencil, courtesy of his friend Malcolm. "Christ Eric, wake up already!" Malcolm shouted. "What's with you lately?"

"Sorry Mal." Eric murmured, only half awake. "What's up?"

"What's up? Your house, Eric. Get going, you're gonna make me late for my date!"

Eric was shocked to find they really were parked outside of his house. When did they get here so fast? …When did he leave work?

"Eric, you feelin' all right? You getting another round of that flu?"

"…Yeah. Must be the flu." Eric said, more to reassure himself than anything else. "Thanks for the ride. Say hi to Tanya for me."

Malcolm's car was gone the second Eric stepped out. He did feel bad, he had made Malcolm late. But honestly, he could hardly remember the time passing since work.

Lost in his thoughts, Eric almost walked into his own front door. The moment he was in the house he reached for the medicine. "It must be the flu…" Eric whispered to himself as the tablet dissolved in his mouth. "It's just the flu."

_Soul number 434 took his last, shuddering breath. Memories of the man's brief life paraded before him, but Eric barely acknowledged them. He was already searching for his next victim. He needed more...more souls, more blood spilt. 626 more. He was running out of time. _He_ would be wondering where Eric was._

_ There. Eric's eyes lit up as he spotted a group of children down the road. They were trying to scare each other with tales of monsters. How ironic that the real monster was heading their way, and they would never know until his scythe pierced them. 435…436…437…438…439. It was sick and twisted, but he couldn't erase the giant grin spread across his face. Oh God, he was enjoying this too much. _

_ …That didn't matter. Even if Eric lost himself, even Eric lost his mind, it meant nothing. This was for him. It was all for him…_

"Alan Humphries, right?"

Eric awoke with a start. He was…in the office? Dammit, he again had no recollection of being at work. He could only remember the dream and…what was that name Mr. Evans said?

"Yes, sir."

A shiver ran down Eric's spine as he heard a voice he'd missed immensely. If he didn't know better he could have sworn it music, it was- wait what the fuck?

"Sir?" Mr. Evans laughed. "Mr. Evans is just fine. Well, welcome to Evans Corp! Here, let me get someone to show you around…SLINGBY!"

Eric rose with a sigh and started to walk out of his cubicle. He had barely left when he heard the angelic voice speak again, slightly panicked.

"Thank you, Mr. Evans, but I remember where everything is from the tour."

"All right then. Get to work."

Relieved the cubicle hid his disappointment, Eric sat back down at his desk. He'd wanted to see this strange man with the voice so familiar…

Eric strained to hear the man's soft footsteps as he walked down the hall. Even the way he walked had some strange familiarity to it. But at the same time…ugh this was so confusing. The dreams, the memory lapses, and now this strange man. Eric wanted it to all go away, to have everything just be-

Eric's thoughts were cut off by the loud sound of a chair being pushed in. "You've got to be kidding me…" Eric grumbled. "Alan Humphries" was in the cubicle right next to his.


	2. Chapter 2

Alan glanced at his reflection in the too-shiny mirror, adjusting his tie. This WAS the first day of his first real job after all. He had to look professional.

Alan sighed. Despite his best attempts, he still looked like a highschooler. Oh well. His work ethic will demonstrate how serious about work he really is.

The brunette pranced out of the elevator, doing his best to appear mature. He would have succeeded if he didn't almost collide with his new boss!

He cleared his throat. "Good morning, sir. I'm here to start my first day."

"Oh, yes, the intern! Alan Humphries, right?" Mr. Evans smiled at him warmly. Good. This wasn't going as horribly as he feared.

"Yes, sir." He nodded slightly.

Mr. Evans laughed. "Sir? Mr. Evans is just fine. Well, welcome to Evans Corp.! Here, let me get someone to show you around." He glanced about quickly, unable to spot any of his workers. Giving up, he finally shouted, "Slingby!"

At the sound of that name, Alan Humphries was almost blinded by pain. He felt as though he couldn't breathe, as if something was choking every last wisp of breath out of his lungs. "No!" He whispered.

Mr. Evans raised his eyebrows at his new employee.

Alan coughed awkwardly. "Thank you Mr. Evans, but I remember where everything is from the tour."

"Well, all right then…" Mr. Evans didn't look convinced, but didn't care to push the issue. "Get to work."

"Of course." Alan nodded probably more than what was necessary and walked slowly down the hall. He had already been given his card and mail key by the receptionist who thought he had come to visit his father, but he wasn't sure if he remembered his cubicle assignment. He made a furtive check behind him to ensure his boss was gone, then dove into his pockets in search of the small slip of paper. Oh, thank God…

95% sure he was in the correct cubicle, he set his laptop case on the desk and settled into his chair. The space was boring and blank. Maybe he would bring a small plant to spruce the place up tomorrow.

His thoughts drifted to that strange sickness that overcame him just a few moments ago. Alan had always been more prone to little colds and dizzy spells than the average person, but that fit was unnatural. Perhaps he was developing asthma? That would be bad starting a new job. He should probably see a doctor. But how do you treat asthma attacks brought on by the mention of a random man's name? Well, of course, Eric Slingby wasn't RANDOM.

…Who?

Shaking his head, Alan turned on his laptop. The receptionist had given him a sheet of instructions for registering with the company's network. Apparently, he wouldn't be able to complete any assignments unless he could scan using this key code and submit within the portal-thing?

"I hate technology." Alan whispered. It just never made sense to him. The young man spent about forty-five minutes struggling and failing to register online before he closed down all the windows in defeat. These directions were simply too complicated. But without this he wouldn't be able to accomplish a single task in his new job. He HAD to register, somehow.

"Technical difficulties?"

Alan nearly fell out of his chair when he heard the voice. But the stifled laugh that followed prompted him to regain his composure before he turned around.

"How long have you been there?" Alan addressed the man peeking over the cubicle. Something about him didn't look…right. It seemed to have more to do with the long blonde ponytail than the sleepy smile suggesting he'd been resting his head in his hands on top of the cubicle for quite some time.

"Oh, I've worked here going on two years now." The blonde grinned. He'd missed that smile, even if it was teasing.

Alan frowned. "That's not what I…" As he spoke, the man disappeared from the top of the cubicle, reappearing in Alan's space seconds later. He wheeled Alan over, kneeling in front of the desk to reach the laptop. "H-hey! What do you think you're doing?"

"I hate this computer stuff too, but you'll get used to it," was the blonde's only response.

A moment's pause, and the man turned to him with a triumphant smile. "You're in."

Alan felt his face light up. "Thank you." He said sincerely.

"No problem, Alan."

Alan's face fell. "I don't believe I introduced myself…Mr. Slingby," he whispered, trying to ignore the growing pain in his chest. Why did it start whenever they said each other's names…?

If possible, the blonde's grin only grew wider still. "Well, apparently that's unnecessary. But if you'd like, I'll do an introduction. It's Eric Slingby. Now you."

Alan was torn. He was enjoying speaking with this man who felt so familiar, but he hated these memories of pain and suffocation that overshadowed every moment he spent with him. Eric-induced asthma, if that even made sense…Alan stood up, glancing back at the screen. "I think we should both return to work, Mr. Slingby."

Now it was Eric's smile that faded, which hurt Alan even more. This just wasn't going well at all.

"…Yeah. You're right. Carry on, _Mr. Humphries._"

Alan watched as the stormy faced man plodded back into his cubicle. The redhead prepared to sit down, but his thoughts were on Eric. He never, ever meant to upset him... He peeked over the cubicle as Eric had done a moment earlier to see the blonde glaring into his computer screen.

"Mr. Slingby?" He whispered softly.

Eric appeared lost in his own thoughts, not noticing the words on the screen or Alan.

Alan tried again, but it seemed Eric was either truly gone or just intent on ignoring him. Sighing, he grabbed a piece of parchment and qui- er, a post-it-note and pen, and wrote him a quick note.

_Mr. Slingby,_

_Sorry if I offended you. I feel like I'm not quite myself today, and so I'd like apologize for my rudeness. I do appreciate you helping me with the computer- I truly am lost when it comes to technology. As thanks, and to make it up to you, would you like to go for coffee today after work? My treat._

_Alan Humphries_

Alan skimmed the note, surprised at his own formality. It made him sound better anyway. Leaning over the cubicle, he stuck the post-it-note on the wall a few inches above the computer screen. As he did so, he watched Eric's face, but the blonde did not move. Impressively, his eyes did not even flick to the paper or Alan's moving hand.

Dissatisfied, Alan returned to work. He still could not help but be distracted by thoughts of Eric. Would he really ignore the apology and the note? Did Alan offend him that bad? Or is something else going on? And why does Eric matter to him that much anyway? This situation was going to make a new job so much more complicated…

After hours of scanning, filing, and linking documents, work was finally over. And despite his distractions, he had a quite a productive first day. Proud of himself, Alan rose to check on Eric. To his surprise, he found the blonde still staring intently on the same webpage, eyes unseeing. He frowned.

"Mr. Slingby?" Alan whispered a final time. No response. A sudden triage of knocks on the wall of Eric's cubicle startled him. But he was more startled when Eric rose and began gathering his things, still not acknowledging Alan or the dark-haired man waiting for him. The man, at least, walked into Eric's cubicle straight past the blonde and shook Alan's hand.

"Hey intern! Name's Malcolm Dietz! Nice to meet ya!"

"I'm Alan Humphries. Nice to meet you too." His eyes traveled back to Eric, who had finished collecting his stuff and was now heading slowly out of the cubicle.

Malcolm sighed dramatically. "Don't let the zombie get to you. Eric got the flu a while back, and ever since he goes into these space-out sessions that can last hours. I better go make sure he doesn't fall down the stairs again…Well, yeah, nice to meet you Alan, see ya tomorrow!" Malcolm dashed after Eric, whose heavy footfall could be heard from far away.

Alan just watched as they disappeared. Slightly jealous that Malcolm's knock could rouse Eric while his voice could not. Well, no matter what, work was certainly going to be interesting.


End file.
